


Familial unit... research?

by Ink_and_paper



Category: NieR: Automata (Video Game)
Genre: Awkward Crush, Crushes, F/M, Fluff, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-04-11
Packaged: 2021-02-22 22:14:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23567881
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ink_and_paper/pseuds/Ink_and_paper
Summary: 21O never was a sentimental person. Only two things mattered to her - YoRHa and research. So why cant she get those thoughts about 9s and children and familial units to go away?And what does 9s think of his operator's sudden personality shift and constant coddling?
Relationships: 9S/21O (NieR: Automata)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 15





	1. Concerns

Familial units. 

They had always fascinated 21O. The sheer love, and trust between a group of people, strong enough to cause them to give their lives for each other, for them to show every part of them to their family, truly fascinated her. With androids, most long–lasting relationships were purely work based, and even then, most would eventually lead to the unit and the operator detesting one another, sometimes even leading to a physical confrontation. Last time that happened, it had taken them weeks to scrape the coolant off the walls. 

Quite simply, they seemed foolish, an investment in heartbreak and hate. 

_So why did she want to be in one so badly?_

9s wasn’t dense – he’d noticed the shifts in personality with his operator. At first, he ignored it, passing it off as a bug, or something they’d missed in diagnostics. But as time went on, as she became more and more... _gentle_ – as she coddled him more and more frequently, more intensely, it became increasingly apparent that this was not an error, but rather, an evolution of personality. 

It’d been weighing on his mind pretty heavily, but it all came to a head during a recon mission with 2b. They were tasked with keeping an eye on the city ruins, and were to finish by doing a scheduled check on Pascal’s village. The mission had gone great, without a single problem arising throughout, and after the six-hour scouting assignment had come to an end, they set off towards the pacifist’s village – or, they would’ve set off, if 9s hadn’t stumbled over the root of a tree, sending him careening off of a building, directly into the cold, metal chest of a Goliath Biped with a resounding _**thunk!**_

After a brief fight with the machines, piles of scrap lay at 2b’s feet, an unimpressed look plastered on her features. 

“9s.” 

“A-ah! Yes, ma’am?” 

“What’s been up with you lately? Usually, you would’ve talked all day, but you’ve been silent for pretty much the whole six hours we’ve been here. Not to mention your lack of focus and decreased combat efficiency. Have you been infected or something? Should I run a diagnostics check?” A flash of concern made its way onto her face, before being replaced with her usual cold, neutral expression. 

“Oh! No, no everything's fine. Nothing to worry about, really! Just been a little tired lately.” 

_Ah. Nothing to worry about then,_ she thought. _I really should stop worrying and get back to the missio-_

“Proposal: Unit 9s should talk about his concerns regarding the unusual activity of his operator.” 

“P-pod!” 

“Hm? Something to do with 21O?... You two didn’t fall out, did you?” 

9s scrambled to his feet, dusting himself off and straightening his collar before he spoke. _Buying time, huh... This must be serious if 9s is trying to find excuses **not** to talk._

“No, of course not! It’s nothing like that! Quite the opposite, actually...” 

"And what’s that supposed to mean?” 

“Well...” He fidgeted nervously, balancing on his heels and fiddling with his gloves, looking anywhere but her. 

“Well?” Her patience was starting to wear thin. “If it’s nothing, I'd quite like to get moving. I’ll tell 21O that you want to talk.” 

“Wait!” _That got his attention._ "Don’t tell her! It’s...” He sighed, and then took a deep breath. “21O’s been acting really weird lately. She’s been really... How do I put this... _Motherly,_ lately. She keeps babying me, congratulating me for menial tasks, and she’s been talking to me like I'm a kid! I mean, I get it, an operators role is to provide support and make sure that their assigned unit is safe, but she usually acts like she doesn’t care whether I live or die – and now, all of a sudden, she’s checking in every five minutes to make sure that I'm ok, and to tell me to stay safe! Usually she seems disappointed that I’m still alive!” 

9s took a deep breath, as 2b stared at him with a blank expression. 

“...” 

“...So?” 

“...” 

She remained motionless for a second, before sighing, and then responding. 

“9s, have you ever heard of a familial unit?”


	2. Suggestions

“21O.” 

A sharp, curt voice called out her name, startling her and pulling her out from her daydream. 

“Commander! I-I mean, yes commander?” 

The tall, blonde woman stared down at her. Her face, usually stoic with a slight frown, had a worried expression painted across her features. 

“Are you... feeling alright? Not to be rude, but your work productivity is down 67 percent; not to mention the various errors in most every report you’ve submitted in the last two weeks.” _Well, this was it. Time to be separated from 9s due to her own incompetence and spend the rest of her days wallowing in her own misery._ “You are one of our most valued operators, so if something is troubling you, I would be more than happy to listen and try to cure whatever it is that’s ailing you.” 

_Wait, what?_

She remained motionless for a second, before responding. 

“...Could we talk right now, Commander?” 

“Of course. Follow me.” 

With that, she turned to leave. 21O signed off on a report, and stood to follow her, ignoring the quiet murmurs of her colleagues. 

================================================================================== 

“...And that is the basics of what a familial unit is.” 

“I... see. So, like Pascal and her ‘children’, right?” 

“Precisely.” 

9s mused on what 2b had said as they exited the machines village. _Could it be that she wants to be my...? No. Surely not, right? I mean, a maternal relationship between an operator and her assigned unit is completely unheard of._

“And besides, it's not like 21O would actually like me.” 

“What was that, 9s?” 

“O-oh! Nothing, nothing at all!” 

“Are you sure? Because it sounded like you said that 21O wouldn't li-” 

“Like the fact that we’re taking so long, you’re right 2b! We really should get a move on, ha ha...” 

2b sighed. “Sure thing, Nines.” 

“Yeah, lets – Wait, what did you just say?” 

“Sure thing, 9s.” 

“No you didn’t! You totally said nines this time, I’m sure of it!” 

“You’re hearing things.” 

“But!-” 

“Focus, 9s.” 

================================================================================== 

“...And every time I’m talking to him, I just want to... baby him, you know? And he isn’t helping either, with all the reports and items about families he keeps sending to me. It’s like he’s trying to provoke me!” 

21O stopped to take a breath, as the commander nodded and turned a page of her book. 

“So, what do you think, commande-” 

“White.” 

“Pardon?” 

“That’s my name. White. Feel free to use it while we’re in here.” 

“Right. Well then, White, what do you think?” 

She took a breath, before closing and putting down a book. 

“What I think, is that you should speak to him privately next time he returns to the bunker. Explain your behaviour, listen to his response, and come to a peaceful conclusion. If that seems to difficult, I can have a chip made to make it easier to talk about how you feel. Is that acceptable?” 

“I... Suppose so.” 

“Excellent. I shall have the chip ready by tomorrow. Do not disappoint me by not showing up.” 

“Yes, Comm... White.” 

“In that case,” She stood up, and turned towards the door - “I shall see you tomorrow.” 

“Affirmative.” 

She watched as the commander left, and sat quietly for a while, before rising from her seat. 

_Well, nothing left to do but wait._


End file.
